Victor Sack wrote:

Kathleen wrote:


While I consider the heart (and tongue for that matter) to be simply
another type of muscle, I *do* balk at eating filter organs. No liver
or kidneys for me, thankyouverymuch. That's where the body attempts to
process most of the hormones, antibiotics and other crap that's added to
animal food these days.


The fact that these organs filter something does not necessarily mean
that they retain it. Healthy liver does not store toxins; it breaks
them down for elimination. Kidneys filter some of the waste, not
toxins, and, if healthy, they do not retain any of it, either.

Healthy liver? Normal kidneys? From animals raised on steroids and
antibiotics?

Do you
also refuse to eat sausages in natural casings, i.e. intestines? How
about tripe, i.e. stomach(s)?


I'm not wild about sausages, period. Although I'm sure there are
exceptions, sausages tend to be salty and fatty. I won't go so far as
to pick them off of pizza but they're not on my normal list of foods.
And no, I don't eat tripe. Or chittlins.

[snip]


My mom used to fix brains, too. And I actually liked them in spite of
knowing what they were. But those are no longer on my menu, either.


This, at least, is somewhat logical, if you eschew brains for the
reasons you stated above. Brains may retain some substances used in the
feed or medical treatment (for example, certain anaesthetics) for a long
time, but so do any other fatty tissues, so it would be just as logical
to forgo eating any animal fat at all, including steaks with marbling.

Prions are what concern me. Eating brains no longer seems like a good
idea at all. And in fact I do generally avoid red meat with heavy
marbling. Sure it tastes really good but it's too fatty to be a normal
daily part of my family's diet. I also avoid farm-raised salmon and
pretty much any fish taken from US rivers.

Except for the "no eating brains" thing I'm not religious about any of
this. I wouldn't throw my plate on the floor and run away screaming if
I were served farm-raised salmon at a wedding reception. I'll eat a
burger or a brat at a picnic. And I'm not above enjoying a lovely rare
tri-tip roast once in a while. All things in moderation.

And glands. No thanks, you can have my share of sweetbreads and rocky
mountain oysters.


Why? What is wrong with glands, except for their usually high fat
content?

Squick factor, plain and simple. There are so many things to eat that
don't gross me out that I feel no major motivation to overcome an
aversion to eating certain parts of an animal.